Chapter 9

***

Naturally, So Gi-hyeon couldn’t catch a wink of sleep.

Trapped in a sudden, suffocating bout of insomnia, he was forced to endure the grueling reality of a deeply intoxicated, unnaturally feverish Alpha wrapping an arm securely around his waist, exhaling soft, rhythmic breaths directly against him from an agonizingly close distance.

Forced to spend the entire night in such electrifying proximity that even the deepest exhaustion fled his body, Gi-hyeon finally felt his irritation shatter past its absolute limit. For a man universally praised for his unshakable, stoic patience, this was unprecedented.

“Hey.”

Glaring resentfully at the broad back currently bustling around the kitchen in a frantic, misguided attempt to prepare an early breakfast, Gi-hyeon called out to Yeon-oh.

Standing directly in front of the counter, the Alpha was aggressively chopping something, the kitchen knife violently clattering against the cutting board in a deafening morning racket. The rich, savory aroma of seasoned meat sizzling on a pan permeated the apartment, yet it utterly failed to ignite even a shred of appetite in Gi-hyeon. It was hardly surprising; he couldn’t remember the last time he had actually achieved a full, uninterrupted night of sleep. A healthy appetite was a luxury reserved exclusively for the well-rested.

However, Jo Yeon-oh didn’t even bother turning around at the summons. Instead, he tossed out a thoroughly half-assed response.

“What.”

Still refusing to spare Gi-hyeon a single glance, he remained anchored to the sink, relentlessly continuing his culinary chaos. Pressing his thumb ruthlessly against the deep, throbbing crease between his brows in a desperate attempt to smooth it out, Gi-hyeon inevitably failed, gritting his teeth as he pressed on.

“Please, for the love of god, just go sleep at your own house tonight.”

Even forcing that simple sentence out required a monumental exertion of patience just to keep from lacing it with vicious profanity.

The era where they operated strictly as friends was officially dead; they now actively recognized each other as lovers. Under those parameters, Gi-hyeon couldn’t simply hurl “you crazy bastard” or “son of a bitch” at him every single time they spoke. He was barely managing to cage the boiling irritation violently clawing its way up his throat. Yet…

“No.”

“Do I look like I’m fucking joking right now, you son of a bitch?”

Gi-hyeon’s fragile resolve was instantly pulverized by Yeon-oh’s maddeningly nonchalant refusal. Completely incapable of tolerating the infuriating bastard without unleashing his fury, Gi-hyeon spat the curse out as if chewing on glass. Only then did the Alpha finally turn to face him.

“What the hell are you getting so violently pissed off about first thing in the morning?”

“I just want to get some fucking sleep, so just for tonight, go sleep at your own house.”

“Why? If I leave, is there someone else you plan on inviting over?”

Yeon-oh stared at Gi-hyeon with profound bewilderment. His expression explicitly screamed: If I’m not here, who the hell else would ever dare enter your territory?

At that exact moment, Gi-hyeon’s rage completely redlined. Following days of suffocating insomnia and relentless, unwanted nervous tension, the naturally passive, easygoing personality that usually just went with the flow violently slammed on the brakes. Scowling fiercely, Gi-hyeon snapped.

“Stop spewing absolute bullshit. If I tell you to go, you go. Or I’ll just go sleep at your place, and you can stay here.”

“…”

Finally realizing Gi-hyeon wasn’t joking, Yeon-oh blinked in surprise before letting out a low, condescending smirk.

“Seriously, what exactly are you so annoyed about?”

Witnessing that dismissive smirk effortlessly reduce his profound frustration to an irrational, trivial tantrum pushed Gi-hyeon to the absolute brink of insanity.

By nature, So Gi-hyeon was a man utterly devoid of extreme emotional fluctuations. Even if someone cursed him out directly to his face, he wouldn’t waste an ounce of energy caring, simply brushing it off with a detached, “If you hate me that much, just ignore me.” Yet, out of the billions of people on Earth, there was exactly one singular existence capable of shattering that impenetrable stoicism.

And that singular existence was currently wearing Gi-hyeon’s apron, cooking a lavish meal without a single shred of self-awareness after having ruthlessly robbed Gi-hyeon of sleep all night.

Idly wondering why a disgustingly wealthy chaebol heir possessed such immaculate culinary skills, Gi-hyeon felt an agonizing surge of resentment toward the situation that relentlessly painted him as the sole unreasonable party.

“Forget it. Just go sleep at your house.”

“Tell me the actual reason, and I’ll go. …Are you seriously trying to invite someone over? You’ve never mentioned anything like that before.”

Yeon-oh was now lightly scowling as he spoke. His expression carried the distinct, accusatory weight of someone condemning Gi-hyeon for daring to grant a third party access to their sacred, shared sanctuary.

Who cares if I invite someone over or throw a massive fucking banquet? What business is it of yours?

Fundamentally, this was Gi-hyeon’s apartment. Even though they weren’t officially cohabitating, the Alpha consistently acted as if he owned the place. That arrogant, possessive attitude, treating Gi-hyeon’s home like a shared marital asset, was the core source of his boiling fury.

Unable to endure the suffocating irritation any longer, Gi-hyeon decided he desperately wanted to retaliate. He wanted to shatter the bastard’s infuriating composure, even if only slightly. Having completely bypassed his threshold for passive endurance, Gi-hyeon’s sole objective was now to make the Alpha as miserable as possible.

“Do you seriously have no memory of stumbling out completely naked and throwing your arms around me when you were drunk yesterday?”

Jo Yeon-oh slowly arched a single brow, his expression dripping with incredulity at the abrupt remark. Turning back briefly, he sharply twisted the stove valve shut. He then crossed his arms, silently challenging Gi-hyeon to continue. Since Yeon-oh had so graciously set the stage, Gi-hyeon found no reason to hold back, spitting the words out without a shred of hesitation.

“You seem to be operating under a massive misunderstanding. I’m the kind of person who could do absolutely anything with you, Yeon-oh. The only reason I haven’t laid a single finger on you until now is because you made it perfectly clear that you’d hate it—”

“Ah. I get it now. Is that what this is about?”

Slicing straight through Gi-hyeon’s explanation, Yeon-oh let out a low, mocking smirk. Gi-hyeon’s jaw slowly snapped shut. He desperately wanted to clamp a hand over the Alpha’s mouth, but paralyzed by the shifting atmosphere, he could only stand in silence and wait for the inevitable blow. Yeon-oh’s lips curled into a knowing smile.

“You’re pissed off because I acted like a couple of Betas dating yesterday, aren’t you?”

“…What?”

Gi-hyeon stared, entirely incapable of comprehending the sheer absurdity of the statement. Betas dating? As a Beta himself, the concept felt utterly alien to him. Unbothered by the profound confusion, Yeon-oh pressed on relentlessly.

“Look, I’m sorry if my actions gave you the wrong idea, but didn’t we already resolve this exact issue last time?”

What issue did we resolve? All the blood violently drained from Gi-hyeon’s body, leaving him as pale and deathly cold as a corpse suffering from acute ischemia. As he stood frozen in shock, Yeon-oh cleared his throat with a dismissive rumble.

“Why are you looking at me like you don’t remember? I already told you that if you’re so desperate and really can’t hold it in, I’ll find someone to service you.”

“…”

Gi-hyeon recoiled.

He had absolutely no idea how that connected to their current argument, but the sheer humiliation of having those deeply insulting words hurled at him again struck like a physical blow. He violently clamped a palm over his own mouth. If he allowed even a single syllable to slip past his lips right now, it would be a curse so unimaginably vile that it would permanently sever their relationship, regardless of how deep their bond was.

While So Gi-hyeon rarely swore, that restraint was merely a byproduct of his naturally quiet, taciturn nature. In reality, years of grueling military service had equipped him with an exceptionally filthy, creatively vulgar vocabulary. Clamping his mouth shut was an absolute necessity for survival.

Unfortunately, Jo Yeon-oh had absolutely no intention of letting him suffer in peace.

“But if you’re going to do it, try to stick to Omegas.” Yeon-oh’s advice came smooth and deliberate. “I’ll make sure to fetch someone from that side of the tracks for you.”

“…What the fuck are you spouting, you motherfucker.”

“Watch your mouth.” Yeon-oh’s brow furrowed as if scolding a misbehaving child, his tone deceptively gentle. “Use pretty words.”

Gi-hyeon let out a breathless, disbelieving scoff. While absolute, unadulterated fury actively bled from his eyes, a single corner of his mouth twitched upward into a vicious, mocking sneer. Witnessing the twisted expression, Yeon-oh’s previously smooth brow deepened into a heavy scowl.

“I ask you to show me a smile, and this is the absolute garbage you give me, So Gi-hyeon.”

“Hah…”

It felt like screaming directly into a brick wall. In Gi-hyeon’s mind, the fundamental rot destroying their relationship was entirely manufactured by Jo Yeon-oh, yet the Alpha effortlessly manipulated the narrative every single time, violently compressing the blame until it rested squarely on Gi-hyeon’s shoulders alone.

Gi-hyeon’s entire universe had been ruthlessly suffocated down to this agonizing reality. Even as the unexpressed emotions violently festered and mutated into pure, toxic rage, there was practically nothing he could do.

He could simply tell Jo Yeon-oh he wanted to end it right now. He could demand they sweep away the pathetic remnants of their seven-year-long game of house and return to normalcy. He could finally confess that he was utterly exhausted from navigating a world filled with people who eagerly branded the relationship between an Alpha and a Beta as filthy and unnatural.

If he did that.

If he actually said the words…

“No, actually. It’s probably better if you strictly stick to Omegas. Alphas are out of the question.”

Jo Yeon-oh, a man who had never once harbored a single romantic feeling for him, would undoubtedly leap at the opportunity to revert back to being “just friends.” Glaring at the Alpha who was currently laying out the ground rules with terrifyingly casual conviction, Gi-hyeon desperately wanted to demand, with a pale, deathly sick face, exactly what the hell the difference was between the two options.

Just then, his oldest friend and lover offered a chillingly perceptive smile, as if reading his mind entirely.

“I don’t care about the front, but you’re absolutely not allowed to use the back.”

“…”

“Even though I’m your Alpha, the idea of you meeting another Alpha—”

Gi-hyeon tightly shut his eyes, then slowly opened them. Though the pause lasted mere seconds, the sheer, suffocating exhaustion stretched the silence into an agonizing eternity. Unable to stomach another word, he violently turned his head away. He knew that if he allowed the Alpha to finish that sentence, he would completely shatter.

If only it had been a different day.

Today, So Gi-hyeon possessed absolutely zero capacity to embrace the vicious thorns hidden within Jo Yeon-oh’s sickeningly tender warmth. But words, much like loosed arrows, could never be recalled.

That’s just cheating.

Bullseye.

The arrow drove perfectly, devastatingly deep into So Gi-hyeon’s sternum.

***

“Dr. So, you’re looking fantastic today.”

“Really?” Gi-hyeon offered a faint, strained smile.

He couldn’t help the sensation that his face was violently fracturing, much like a plaster statue forced to smile against its rigid nature. The ultimate curse of being a corporate slave was that no matter how utterly fucked your personal life was, the second you let it show, you instantly became the office lunatic.

Despite his internal screaming, Gi-hyeon had still dragged himself to work, letting the head nurse’s cheerful greeting wash over him without fully registering it.

“My shoulder has been killing me lately. Is it okay if I drop by later?”

“Of course. Come down during lunch, and I’ll administer some physical therapy.”

Gi-hyeon nodded smoothly. No matter how physically exhausted he was, he was instinctively unfailingly polite to anyone roughly the same age as his late mother.

Looking visibly pleased, the head nurse beamed, promising to buy him a coffee as payment. Gi-hyeon quickly waved off the offer; he knew he’d inevitably get too busy, leaving the ice to melt entirely before being unceremoniously dumped down the sink anyway.

He had practically fled his apartment this morning. His master plan for the evening was to check directly into a hotel after work—a pathetic, self-imposed runaway attempt. Seeking refuge at a friend’s house was impossible; Jo Yeon-oh intimately knew every single person Gi-hyeon considered a friend. Crashing with a hospital colleague was equally out of the question; the sheer agony of seeing a coworker for 24 hours straight was a cruel and unusual punishment neither of them deserved.

Since Jo Yeon-oh practically lived at his place—and Manager Yoo meticulously restocked all groceries and daily necessities on the Alpha’s dime—Gi-hyeon had managed to hoard a staggering amount of his own salary. Coupled with the substantial inheritance his mother had left him, burning cash on a hotel room was hardly a financial strain.

Therefore, abandoning his home for a few nights of absolute sanctuary felt like a brilliant strategy. Having finally made the decision, he was currently reveling in the sheer genius of his plan.

The exact second his lunch break began, Gi-hyeon inhaled his meal in three flat minutes, sprinted back down to his office, and immediately booked a hotel room online. Just as he finished, the head nurse arrived for her treatment. Ushering her toward a therapy bed, she caught a glimpse of his monitor and teasingly asked if he was booking a vacation. Gi-hyeon merely smiled and shook his head. Interpreting his silence as suspiciously coy, she pressed further.

“Now that I think about it, Dr. So… do you have a girlfriend?”

He didn’t have a girlfriend, but he did have a boyfriend—though as of yesterday, the bastard was officially reclassified as a mortal enemy. So, Gi-hyeon simply denied that as well.

“No. I’m just planning to go alone for a change of scenery.”

“That sounds wonderful. Make sure you get plenty of rest.”

Offering no further response, Gi-hyeon dragged the heavy extracorporeal shockwave therapy machine over to her bed. After enduring the agonizing treatment—which patients always shrieked about before ultimately weeping in sheer relief at how refreshed they felt afterward—a significant portion of his break had evaporated. Sending the head nurse on her way, Gi-hyeon immediately collapsed onto the empty bed.

With only twenty minutes of his lunch break remaining, every single second was a precious commodity. He fell asleep the absolute second his head hit the pillow, only to be groggily awakened by the synchronized alarms set by the other therapists, signaling the start of afternoon prep.

“Who the hell sliced a piece off my lunch break?”

“I think that bastard took a chunk out of mine too.”

“Is yours fully intact, Dr. So?”

“Nope. They definitely carved a piece out of mine as well.”

Therapists from both the sports clinic and the general ward gathered around, grumbling collectively about the tragically short break. Still, even that brief power nap had left Gi-hyeon’s body feeling significantly lighter. He ruthlessly shoved the relentless, agonizing memories threatening to surface into a dark corner of his mind.

Fortunately, the chaotic afternoon left absolutely zero room for intrusive thoughts. When a middle school volleyball player failed to report for rehab after lunch, Gi-hyeon had to personally hunt the kid down and drag him back by the collar.

“Hyun-jin. If you’re going to act like this, just discharge yourself. Why are you even doing rehab? Go home, boil some ramen, and watch volleyball anime.”

“Aargh! I’m sorry, Doc! I was wrong!”

Since he couldn’t physically strike a kid who was desperately begging for mercy after accidentally turning off his alarm and sleeping through his session, Gi-hyeon merely shoved the shaved head toward the mats and ordered him to start stretching immediately.

“Doc, can I just do two sets of lunges instead?”

“Why.”

“Ah, my knee just really hurts…”

“It doesn’t hurt at all. I watched you absolutely pummeling Seong-bin earlier.”

While Gi-hyeon was meticulously organizing a fresh delivery of sports tape and C-tape into the cabinets, Soo-young, a youth taekwondo athlete he managed, began spouting endless excuses to cut down his routine. Normally, if an athlete complained of pain, Gi-hyeon immediately halted the session for an examination, but since this specific kid was practically at the very end of his recovery phase, Gi-hyeon knew he was plotting something.

“You just want to rest, don’t you?”

“No… It’s not that… I just really don’t want to do them.”

Hmm, Gi-hyeon rumbled thoughtfully.

Checking the clock, he noted it was past 3 PM—the exact hour when young athletes, deeply anxious about their impending return to the field, typically hit a wall of profound boredom and burnout.

Gi-hyeon reached out, lightly smacking the back of Soo-young’s head. The boy’s short bob bounced slightly from the impact. Shocked by the sudden, playful aggression, Soo-young’s head whipped up.

“Dr. So just hit me.”

“Sue me.”

“I’m not going to let this go.”

“Yeah, got it. Make sure you become incredibly successful so you can properly sue me. Do an interview. When you win a gold medal and go on You Quiz, look right into the camera and say, ‘Doc So Gi-hyeon from Haeseong Rehabilitation Centre hit me. He’s an incredibly evil doctor.’ Just do that.”

Soo-young stared at him, utterly dumbfounded by the sheer absurdity. Gi-hyeon let out a quiet chuckle.

“Soo-young, training is exhausting, isn’t it?”

“…Yes.”

Staring down at the despondent young athlete, Gi-hyeon offered a brutally honest piece of wisdom.

“Being a corporate slave is infinitely worse. Go do your lunges.”

“Ugh, seriously, what is your problem?” Soo-young whined.

Wiping the smile entirely off his face, Gi-hyeon offered a deadpan compromise. “I’ll let you do just 30 lunges instead. Come find me when you’re done. I’ll give you a massage.”

“Wait? Really?! Hell yeah!”

Watching the young athlete’s face instantly illuminate with pure, unadulterated joy over a measly 30-lunge reduction brought a genuine smile to Gi-hyeon’s face. It must be nice to have such simple problems. Meanwhile, the catastrophic disaster consuming the adult So Gi-hyeon showed absolutely zero signs of resolution.

Regardless, he needed to finish organizing the tape cabinet, massage Soo-young’s ‘pitiful’ knee, comfort poor Seong-bin—who had suffered a relentless beating from Soo-young earlier—and finally clock out to seek refuge at the hotel.

Tonight, he desperately needed absolute isolation. The tragic irony of So Gi-hyeon’s love was that it was always profoundly, agonizingly lonely when the two of them were together.

***